You can enhance your Wharton experience through formal scholars programs and hands-on research with faculty.
With over 170 research centers and institutes, Penn ranks among America’s top recipients of competitive research grants. Participating in research is a great way to customize what you’re learning in a specific area and pursue a topic in depth with help from a faculty scholar.
There are many opportunities at Penn and Wharton for you to engage in creating knowledge through research.
JOSEPH WHARTON SCHOLARS (JWS)
This community of outstanding Wharton undergraduates emphasizes the importance of the arts and sciences and scholarly research within the framework of a business education. Joseph Wharton Scholar (JWS) students also participate in Penn’s Benjamin Franklin Scholars honors program, which gives them opportunities to take smaller honors courses and do intensive research. Students are invited to join the JWS program before entering their first year or can apply at the end of the first year.
WHARTON RESEARCH SCHOLARS (WRS)
This year-long program gives a select group of upperclassmen the chance to conduct research under the supervision of Wharton faculty members. Students submit a research proposal or apply to a research project proposed by one of the participating faculty members.
UNIVERSITY SCHOLARS
This research-based honors program allows students to work independently on original research. Students apply for entry between the second semester of the first year and the first semester of their third year.
WHARTON SUMMER PROGRAM FOR UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH (SPUR)
This 10-week summer program provides a select group of highly motivated students the opportunity to design and perform in-depth research under the guidance of some of Wharton’s preeminent faculty.
WHARTON SOCIAL IMPACT RESEARCH EXPERIENCE (SIRE)
This program provides grants to support undergraduate research on topics that promote economic and social value. Students design their own research projects, which are carried out over the summer under the guidance of some of Wharton’s top faculty members.
Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program
The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships supports undergraduate involvement in faculty research through the Penn Undergraduate Research Mentoring Program (PURM), which provides students completing their first or second undergraduate year the opportunity to spend a summer as a research assistant for a Penn faculty member. Since its inception in 2007, PURM has funded more than 400 Penn faculty members to provide more than 500 undergraduates with cutting-edge research experiences.
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